The former Additional District and Sessions Judge, Gwalior, who resigned after alleging that she was sexually harassed by a sitting judge of the Madhya Pradesh High Court today moved the Supreme Court seeking justice.

Breaking her silence a month after she resigned, she alleged that the High Court judge who had sexually harassed her had threatened her with dire consequences.

The lady judge said she didn’t lodge a formal complaint against the HC judge as she wasn’t given an opportunity to do so.

“Under the rules, it is only the Chief Justice of Madhya Pradesh High Court who can conduct a discreet inquiry to verify the fact. Once he is convinced, he has to send a report to the Chief Justice of India. Finally, it is the CJI, who sets in motion the inquiry under the in-house procedure. I tried five to six times to meet the MP HC Chief Justice. But he was not ready to meet me. When the head of our judicial family in the state was not ready to meet, who could I turn to? To the District Judge, who was involved in the crime? To the other judge who was also involved? I could only have gone to the Chief Justice, the karta of the family. But, unfortunately, he was not even ready to see me. The procedure — in case the complaint is against a HC judge — is that the complaint has to be sent to the Chief Justice through the district judge. But in this case the district judge was also involved in my sexual harassment. He would have simply torn up the complaint and initiated action against me on some cooked-up charges,” she said.

She said the inquiry being conducted currently was a “sham and an eyewash” aimed at “continuing her harassment and saving the accused”.

“Judges refer to each other as brother and sister,” she said. “And, here I am, seeking justice from my seniors, my continued…